Study Programmes

Advice For You covers a whole variety of different study programmes. To help you pick the most relevant course for you, we've created this guide to programmes available to study in England.

English Courses

General English

A typical General English programme includes:

Developing and improving spoken English to make student to be a clearer and more confident speaker.
Developing listening and comprehension skills.
Learning the basic grammatical structures of the English language.
Everyday English - language that students can use in real-life situations, both spoken and written.
Reading practice and comprehension testing.

English for Academic Purposes:

To help students learn the English they need for academic study; For example, IELTS preparation.

Pre-university English courses (Pre-sessional courses):

For students who plan to study in the UK, and have been asked for a minimum level of English. These course will teach student to reach the right level of English in order to study at particular courses. These courses can last from three weeks to a year.

Support/in session English courses:

These are like the courses above, but are usually free. They are to give extra help after the main academic course has started.

English for specific purposes:

For people who want to learn English to further a career in areas such as business, travel and tourism, and catering.

English Plus combined courses:

English language is only one part of a course. The other part - the 'plus' - could be training for a career or a professional qualification. The 'plus' part of the course could be anything .

English plus work experience (work and study):

A general English course combined with study of another subject such as business studies or IT/computing, with work experience

It may be course that students will get paid. It is paid work experience. Normally it will be in catering and hospitality business.

Further Education Courses

Certificate and diploma course:

These courses are more like professional course which are accredited by professional organisation such as ABE, ACCA, or CIM

Undergraduates Degrees:

Degrees are the most popular undergraduate qualification in the UK. They are academic courses, usually studied over three years in England, Northern Ireland and Wales, or four years in Scotland (where the title master's degree may be awarded). Some degree courses may be extended for a year to enable students to spend a year in industry (such as on engineering degrees) or overseas (such as on degrees in modern languages).

Post Graduates:

Postgraduate certificate or diploma (PG Cert/Dip)

Postgraduate certificates and diplomas are one-year taught postgraduate courses that don't usually involve research. They're often accepted as professional qualifications in the relevant field, such as education or management, giving you a fantastic head start in your chosen career.

Taught master's (MA, MSc, LLM, MEd etc)

Taught master's courses generally last for one year and consist of two elements: you'll complete a number of modules (which will include attending lectures and seminars, writing essays and taking examinations) and produce a dissertation from original research.

Research master's (MRes, MPhil)

On a master's degree by research, you won't typically attend lectures - instead you'll devote the entire year to research. Your final mark will be determined by the quality of your dissertation.

Master of Business Administration (MBA)

An MBA is a specialist business taught master's course that will give you a real step up the managerial ladder. It's the best-known and most popular postgraduate qualification.

Doctorate (PhD)

A PhD, also know as a doctorate, will take you three to four years to complete, during which you'll be working on a single research project. In you final year, you'll be asked to present a dissertation of approximately 100,000 words.

New Route PhDs

New Route PhDs include taught elements as well as a research project and give you the opportunity to undertake interdisciplinary study.